Sears reveals the symbolism behind its new logo that some people are mocking and comparing to Airbnb

Sears has rebranded and adopted the slogan "making moments matter," along with a new logo that is designed to represent a combination of a house and a heart.

Some customers have expressed confusion over the new symbol and accused Sears of ripping off Airbnb's logo. Others have praised the new look, calling it "beautiful."

Sears explained the logo in a post to Facebook: "The new icon was created to represent both home and heart, this shape also conveys motion through an infinity loop, reminiscent of one getting their arms around both home and life. The rings, like those of a tree trunk, show longevity. With home and heart at the center, the rings radiate and grow to encompass our broad assortment of products and services."

The department-store chain rolled out the new slogan "making moments matter" in a video posted to Facebook on April 28, along with a logo designed to be a combination of a house and a heart.

People have shared mixed reactions to the new logo. Some praised it, calling it "beautiful," while others expressed confusion over the symbol and accused Sears of ripping off Airbnb's logo.

"Isn't this Airbnb? The last thing you need is a lawsuit!" one person wrote on Facebook. "Airbnb called — said they want their logo back," wrote another.

A third Facebook commenter called it "the worst logo ever" while another wrote, "Yep sears is going out of business soon with this logo."

Some people expressed confusion.

"Don't get the symbol," one person wrote on Facebook. Another asked: "What the heck is it supposed to be?"

Sears responded to a thread of customer reactions on Facebook with the following message:

"The new icon was created to represent both home and heart, this shape also conveys motion through an infinity loop, reminiscent of one getting their arms around both home and life. The rings, like those of a tree trunk, show longevity. With home and heart at the center, the rings radiate and grow to encompass our broad assortment of products and services."

Several customers praised Sears' new branding as well.

"Beautiful Sears," wrote one on Facebook.

Another wrote, "Embracing the home is pretty cool. It will take me a little to get used to, but I dig the colors."

The slogan was developed to specifically target baby boomers and young families, according to a Chicago Tribune interview with Peter Boutros, chief brand officer of Sears and Kmart and president of the Kenmore, Craftsman, and DieHard brands. Kmart also has a new slogan: "love where you live."

Boutros told the Tribune last month, ahead of the rebranding, that the new "brand mantras" and accompanying marketing campaigns were designed around the concept of going "back to the future."

AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

"What were we good at? What is relevant from our history today? And the thing we were good at was making moments matter," he told the Tribune.

Sears is trying to make a comeback after emerging from bankruptcy in February with a smaller fleet of stores under the ownership of Transform Holdco, a subsidiary of a hedge fund run by Sears' former CEO, Eddie Lampert.

Sears said in April that it plans to open smaller stores called Sears Home + Life that are about 10,000 square feet, compared to the 150,000 to 250,000 square feet of a typical department store.

The company has also continued closing some stores and downsizing others.